It is well known that many crops must be protected from freezing weather. In instances in which the crops are citrus fruit or tomatoes, for example, it is conventional to utilize combustion devices in the nature of smudge pots or other burners in the winter season, for such devices can serve the important function of raising the ambient temperature around the trees or plants by a few degrees, thus to prevent a substantial amount of the crop being lost.
Obviously, the proper igniting of the burners or smudge pots is a matter of critical importance, for if the burners are not activated when weather conditions approach a critical temperature, the entire crop could be jeopardized. On the other hand, if the burners are needlessly activated, this also represents a sizable expense, for a substantial amount of labor has customarily been involved in the lighting of burners, and likewise substantial amounts of labor are involved in turning them off, refilling same, and preparing them for the next cycle of use.
Various attempts have been made to mechanize the procedure for activating the burners when such are needed, but not only have such devices been quite expensive and difficult to maintain in the proper working order, but also it is quite difficult to "fine tune" such prior art devices such that they on the one hand will not needlessly ignite the burners, but on the other hand, will serve to consistently activate the burners when temperature conditions indicate a necessity for their use.
It was in an attempt to overcome the problems associated with these prior art ignition devices for burners that the present invention was evolved.